Rabbi Weiss' iconoclasm has given other Orthodox
leaders plenty of headaches, but perhaps his unwillingness to play along with
an intolerable status quo is exactly what we need, given the stakes involved.

Despite not seeing eye-to-eye with him, the council’s Executive Vice President,
Rabbi Mark Dratch, has acknowledged that Rabbi Weiss is “person of integrity”
and “a person who is committed to halachah.”

The issue is Rabbi Weiss' refusal
to be a spectator to the scandal of the rabbinate, a scandal that threatens
Israeli-Diaspora relations and the unity of the Jewish People.

The real embarrassment, though, is that the RCA
cherishes a relationship with a religious body that has veered from its sacred
mission, choosing to detach itself from, rather than embrace, the majority of
the Jewish people.

I am asking Avi Weiss and the Orthodox,
Conservative and Reform rabbis of America to continue their activities in Israel.
Don’t sit idly by. Be vocal about your criticism of the Chief Rabbinate.

We all
know that their actions are rotten to the core but none of us are doing
anything about it. The Chief Rabbinate, in its current constellation, has never
been more detached from reality and the people over which it governs. It has
succeeded in transforming the title of rabbi into an abominable joke as it
continues to search for new stringencies, promulgating a feeling of alienation
towards the beautiful teachings of Judaism. The majority of the secular
community has given up on this struggle and now many of the modern Orthodox
community are following suit.

If you don’t mind, I have a bit of advice. Don’t
spend your time, energy and political capital trying to get back in to an
institution that doesn’t wan’t you as a member.

The Chief Rabbinate isn’t
corrupt because it has dissed Rabbi Weiss. The Chief Rabbinate is corrupt
because rabbis should not be instruments of the state. You won’t fix it by
granting specific rabbis (likely) tentative reprieves. And you won’t stay
insiders for long.